By Tshepiso Seopa
NEW Year and it is time for a new look for Braamfontein's Protea Parktonian Hotel, which is gearing up to start refurbishments in early January.
The upgrade is in line with the major revamp of Braamfontein aimed at renewing its role as a centre for business and entertainment in Johannesburg.
Plans for the 21-year-old hotel include putting in a swimming pool and a gymnasium on the top floor. However, the first step is installing new lifts and air conditioners.
The Protea Parktonian All Suite Hotel initiated a sectional title sales programme to fund its R30 million renovations. Under the programme, some suites were sold to private individuals who will own them as self-contained flats.
The rest of the suites will still operate as a hotel. There is a total of 294 rooms in the building, but it has not been decided how many will be sold and how many will be kept as hotel rooms.
Debbie Prinsloo, the hotel spokesperson said, "[Some] suites have been sold to private individuals but [the others] will continue to work in a pool as a commercial hotel and not as apartments ... Buyers will place their units into a shared income pool.
"The first phase of the upgrade project has already been sold out, with over a 100 units sold at R450 000 each."
Each refurbished unit would consist of a fully furnished suite with a small kitchenette, a bedroom, a lounge and a dinning area.
Owners of the private suites will earn 5 percent of the income generated by the hotel's conference facilities over three years.
"The package puts away the problems of owning a flat, renting it out and managing it. With the 5 percent guaranteed income over the first three years, buyers stand to benefit from the capital growth from the suite," Prinsloo said.
"The approved Gautrain project [also] has the potential to enhance the capital gain, as is the case all over the world with rapid transport systems guaranteeing growth for properties within the vicinity of the stations.
"In this case the Parktonian, as the closest hotel to the main Gautrain station, stands to benefit."
In 2002 a R200 million project was unveiled by big business in Braamfontein that entailed creating a Braamfontein Corporate Precinct. The aim was to make the area more attractive to business and more welcoming to regular patrons and visitors.
Braamfontein is well located, straddling Jan Smuts Avenue and Empire Road, which provide quick access to the north, east and west.
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